S8 Ep736: 1. THE OSS ORIGINS AND MARY BANCROFT Guest Mundy: Guest Mundy describes the CIA's WWII roots through the OSS, where elite, college-educated women like Mary Bancroft were recruited for their intelligence and language skills,. Working as Allen Dulles's "rig

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John Batchelor

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🗓️ 13 April 2026

⏱️ 11 minutes

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Summary

Sisterhood, CIA, and the Terror Transition

APRIL 13, 2026

This collection of transcripts details the transformative role of women at the CIA, from the agency's origins during World War II to the pursuit of Osama bin Laden. Authors and analysts explore how pioneers like Mary Bancroft provided vital intelligence during the Cold War despite being relegated to clerical roles and facing systemic sexism. The narrative follows the career of Heidi August, who rose from a secretary to a station chief, illustrating the shift in focus from Soviet espionage to global counterterrorism. A central theme is the intellectual contributions of female analysts, such as Cindy Storer and Barbara Sude, who identified the threat of al-Qaeda long before the 9/11 attacks. Despite their pioneering work in targeting and intelligence analysis, these women often struggled to have their warnings heard by male leadership. Ultimately, the sources highlight a hidden history of sacrifice and expertise, showing how a dedicated "sisterhood" fundamentally shaped modern American intelligence operations.

1. THE OSS ORIGINS AND MARY BANCROFT Guest Mundy: Guest Mundy describes the CIA's WWII roots through the OSS, where elite, college-educated women like Mary Bancroft were recruited for their intelligence and language skills,. Working as Allen Dulles's "right-hand woman" in neutral Switzerland, Bancroft provided crucial analysis and handled a high-level Nazi double agent plotting against Hitler,,. Despite her sophisticated operational role, she faced blatant sexism, once being ordered by Dulles to fetch food during a meeting. Mundy explains that these pioneer women were intentionally tested for their tolerance of being under-recognized while men claimed credit for their work. (2)

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0:35.4	This is CBS Eye on the World with John Batchelor.
0:40.0	Here's John Batchelor.
0:42.2	And I welcome Liza Monday, the author of a new book that is both revelatory of the history of the CIA
0:48.5	and a comment on the culture of the United States over the last 70 years,
0:53.7	especially with regard more than half
0:56.1	the population, that would be women. The book is The Sisterhood, the Secret History of Women at the CIA.
1:03.6	Liza, congratulations and good evening. And like most melodramas, we begin in the Second World War.
1:10.2	And we begin with a young woman named Mary
1:12.9	Bancroft, Smith College, and someone who is extremely well positioned to tell us about the beginnings
1:21.5	of what becomes the CIA in the Cold War following the Second War.
1:27.1	Who is Mary Bancroft? What do we need to know about
1:29.5	her? Good evening to you, Liza. Good evening, and thank you so much for having me. And I love
1:35.2	talking about Mary Bancroft. She's a great example of the women who played an enormous role
1:41.5	as to building our intelligence capabilities during World War II.
1:46.0	It's, you know, it's hard to believe I live much of the time in Washington, D.C., where we now have 18 intelligence agencies.
1:53.8	We have intelligence agencies that exist to oversee other intelligence agencies.
1:57.8	And I used to be able to say 17, but now we have the Space Force.
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